Dwight Howard helps Hawks soar back to shock James Harden, Rockets

Dwight Howard’s return to Houston could not have gone much better for the maligned center, who led the Hawks to a 113-108 win over the Rockets.

Howard’s three seasons with the Rockets didn’t quite go as planned, which is why he braced for some boos Thursday night. And boo they did at Toyota Center. But Howard got the final say by scoring 24 points on 11 of 13 shooting with 23 rebounds.

It’s the 47th career 20-20 game in Howard’s career, which makes for 31 more than any other player since Howard entered the league in 2004-05.

The Hawks trailed by 20 points during the second half but stormed back by outscoring Houston 36-11 in final 8:25 of the game.

Atlanta mostly has Tim Hardaway Jr. to thank for the comeback.

Hardaway scored 23 of his 33 points in fourth quarter, while grabbing six rebounds and draining four 3-pointers.

After the game, he said it felt like the rim got “bigger and bigger with each basket.”

Verlander made some headlines before the season when he and fiancee Kate Upton purchased a home in Beverly Hills. There was speculation even then that Verlander could be headed to the Dodgers.

While Verlander does have a no-trade clause, it appears he will waive it under certain circumstances. He certainly left the door open for a move after his last start on Monday.

“I guess there might be a fleeting moment where you say, ‘This might have been the last time,’ but it is very fleeting,” Verlander said, via MLive.com. “It is in the back of your mind that you never know what can happen. There is a moment walking off the mound you just take a second to appreciate it. I know I didn’t acknowledge it coming off the mound, probably because we are in the middle of a tie game.

“Maybe I wish I could have gone back and said thank you, but who knows, maybe Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping there is a lot more of those to come, maybe there’s not. All I know Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys is that I heard it, I felt it, I appreciated it.”